DNA Extraction of a Banana

 Intro: Did you know you could easily extract the DNA from many different types of fruits using common, everyday materials? I certainly did not. In this video you will see, step by step, exactly how to extract the DNA of a banana. The method is so easy you could even try to extract at home!

Reflection: In this project, my group and I extracted DNA from a banana using isopropyl alcohol. To do this, we mashed up one banana with a mixture of water, soap, and salt. Mashing the banana with our hands mechanically breaks down the cell walls while the soap breaks down the cell membrane's phospholipid bilayer, releasing the DNA from the cell. The soap helps the cell to lyse while the salt breaks down the protein chains that are bound to the DNA strands which allows the DNA to separate and clump together, making the DNA easier to see and extract. DNA has a negative charge and salt are positive ions which neutralizes the charge of the DNA, allowing the DNA to clump and stick together. After the banana is mashed with the solution, the mixture is strained to drain out the liquid and get rid of any other cell parts. Next, cold isopropyl alcohol is added to the mixture which makes the DNA less soluble, allowing for the DNA to precipitate into a white film on the top. I thought that this project was a very fun experience that was super easy to do. As for the video, I think that our filming and video editing went very smoothly and my group and I didn't run into any troubles throughout the recording and editing process. One area of improvement for our video could be adjusting the sound levels so that every video clip had the same level of sound and audio, just to create a more smooth sounding video. Another area of improvement could be adding more, in-depth information. Overall, the content was well-organized, and the hands-on demonstration helped to make our video very interactive and fun.